On May 1st, Haverhill singer/songwriter Liz Bills welcomed “Mama’s Song,” a warm and loving message not just to her mother, but to mothers everywhere. The song is quiet in nature, with a straightforward and relaxing melody. Over the course of its four minutes, within the frame of a hypothetical phone call, Liz professes to her mother thanks for her hard work, sacrifices, and influence. Whether that impact manifests now or in the future, that doesn’t matter. It is there and apparent.
The song is a departure from the heavier, country rock style Liz Bills has demonstrated on songs like “Merrimack Jane.” As she herself so put it, “I generally don’t sing soft folky fingerpicking acoustic songs.” In fact, according to Liz, at one point the song was almost not released into the world. “I wrote this song for my mom to comfort her and honestly almost threw the song away… I never intended to share it with people at shows or to record it and release it initially.”
So what changed, exactly? It had a lot to do with reception of the song. After the song received a strong, affecting response, Liz sought out the fan-submitted elements that made the crux of the music video (released yesterday, on Mother’s Day) assembling them not only to create a work of art that reinforced the overall message of the song, but also as a piece that stands on its own. As Liz put it, “I changed my mind and decided to share the song with others when I played the song for a dear friend and she started to cry. After that I realized that others felt really connected to this message of love for their mama.”
Indeed, it’s a message that comes through strongly, whether it’s in the song’s message of love and gratitude, or the video’s further exploration of that message through the use of interspersed photographs and videos. We see just a glimpse into different relationships—from a range of family, baby, and childhood photos, to ones of both child and mother all grown up. “I just knew in my heart that I needed to involve all of the moms in my music video because this song was not just for my mom, but it was for everyone’s mom. The song and music video is a celebration of mothers all around the world.” The song and video serves as a moving and touching tribute, and it could not have come on a better date than on a holiday that both celebrates and champions mothers around the world.
Watch the music video for “Mama’s Song” below, and stream the song via bandcamp here.